JEDDAH, 22 April 2005 — Saudi Arabia’s new mobile service provider Mobily, the official brand name of Etihad Etisalat, has launched its first customer call center (CCC) in Jeddah. Considered the most advanced facility of its kind in the Middle East, the CCC is designed to provide efficient services that respond to queries for information on Mobily services.
“The center will act as a hub for all of the Kingdom’s centers that will soon see an addition in Alkhobar,” Mobily Customer Service Manager Yasser Maher said. The center serves to provide Mobily customers with an array of choices that best fit their needs and meet their tastes. “Our commitment is to be there for our customers round-the-clock and Kingdom-wide via a toll-free number that is soon to be announced,” Maher said.
In line with its policy to provide maximum job opportunities to the citizens, Mobily has hired and trained 250 Saudi males and females to be appointed at the CCC. Prior to that, extensive tests and interviews were conducted to shortlist candidates who underwent intensive training.
Established in accordance with a 2004 royal decree, the ownership of the company is two-fold — a Saudi ownership comprising public investors holding 20 percent of the company’s shareholding, while private investors own a 45 percent stake. Etisalat of UAE owns the balance of 35 percent.
Meanwhile, Mobily has started testing its services Kingdom-wide. The testing phase marks the company’s preparations to launch its services in the Kingdom. A limited number of Mobily SIM-cards has since been distributed to a group of predetermined users who are to test all of the services the company intends to roll out.
Items being checked include a number of elements covering services and products the company will be providing locally through points of sales including top quality customer service. Testers will also check the multi-payment methods that will be available to customers. At the end of the test period, which has not been revealed, comments will be fed into a system that will identify and rectify problems, if any.
Etihad Etisalat is the recipient of the award for Islamic Finance Deal of the Year at the Euromoney Islamic Finance awards held in London recently. The $2.35 billion Islamic deal to finance operations of the company was commended as a significant milestone in the history of Islamic finance.
Hailed as the largest Shariah compliant financial transaction in the world and the largest debt transaction in the region, the deal represents the innovative spirit of Etihad Etisalat Mobily. The company is to soon launch the second GSM mobile service and the first 3G service in the Kingdom.